From the archives: Alan Greenspan on systematic fear in the economy

Alan Greenspan, who worked with four presidents during his 18-year tenure as chair of the Federal Reserve, died Monday, June 22, 2026, at age 100. In this Oct. 20, 2013 “Sunday Morning” profile, Greenspan talked with Anthony Mason about what he learned from overseeing the American economy during a period of sustained growth, prior to the 2008 collapse; how to measure irrational human behavior in predicting the market; and how America’s economic system is built upon trust, saying, “You break trust down, and the system implodes.” Mason also talked with Greenspan’s wife, NBC journalist Andrea Mitchell, about her husband’s obsession with writing.